Fender vs. Gibson: The Ultimate Guitar Brand Showdown

Let’s face it: these two companies pretty much built rock and roll. But they went about things about as differently as two companies could and still be in direct competition with one another. Let’s investigate some of the strengths of each team’s offerings and the dynamic between the two in this ultimate Fender vs. Gibson showdown!

It’s interesting to note that, after all the years, these two companies still maintain a distinctive “flavor.” Broadly spoken, Gibsons tend towards a darker more aggressive tone, while Fender’s lighter bodies and bolted neck joint favors brighter tones with more “chime.” But let’s really dive into the differences between Gibson vs. Fender guitars.

Gibsons and Fenders both come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes, but there are a few distinct differences between the two manufacturers when it comes to body styles.

Both manufacturers make both solidbody and semi-hollow guitars. (Although Fender’s “semi-hollow” guitars are called “thinline” and they’re only hollow on one side. They’re not traditional semi-hollow guitars.)

Both manufacturers also gravitate toward smooth, rounded shapes for their guitar bodies. Of course, there are some notable outliers, like the Gibson Explorer or Flying V, but primary models like the Les Paul, ES-Series, Stratocaster, and Telecaster all feature very round, comfortable shapes.

Gibson and Fender are both mostly known for their electric guitars, but they make acoustic guitars as well. Traditionally, Gibson acoustic guitars are considered to be higher quality than Fenders — which are more cost-friendly.

In the overall assessment, over the years both brands kind of moved toward one another in the nature of the products they offer. Fender typically uses single-coil pickups, but they’ve slowly began using humbucking pickups to get the fatter sound that Gibsons were capable of. On the other hand, Gibson primarily uses Humbuckers, but they began using coil splitters and coil taps to “thin out” their output to mimic the brighter Fender tones.

A lot of purists would bristle at the thought of a Les Paul with anything but two humbucking pickups or a Stratocaster without three single coil pickups. The good news is both companies make faithful period-correct reissues of most everything they have ever made, so there is a solution for the traditionalist crew.

Scale length is the distance from the bridge saddles to the nut.

Most Gibson guitars have a 24.75” scale length.

Most Fender guitars have a 25.5” scale length.

Both companies have varied the neck profile over the years. The earliest models had beefy necks that would later be described as “50’s” profile.

Early Gibson necks can vary a lot because they were carved by hand. Modern Gibson necks are shaped using CAD-CAM, which assures uniformity. Gibsons necks got slimmer in the 60’s and became known for that decade. When Norlin purchased Gibson in 1974, they went with an even slimmer neck carve and a larger headstock with a volute, hoping to overcome the broken headstock complaint. Current Gibson Les Paul’s will have a 50’s or a 60’s neck profile. A lot of Gibsons have a slightly “offset” feel where the bass side of the neck is a little fatter, simulating the feel of a vintage instrument after a lot of play has worn down the treble side.

Fender used a lettering system to describe their neck profiles. The first profile was described as a “U” carve, which was very clubby with almost squared off shoulders. They mellowed the shoulders a little to create a “D” carve. This was followed by a “Hard V” having more of a spine with fast sloping sides. This was followed by a “Soft V” which rounded out the sides a little. The 60’s saw the profile move to an oval carve, slightly thinner with rounded shoulders. This became known as “C” carve, which is used to this day.

Most Gibson electric guitars have a 12” fretboard radius.

Most Fender guitars have a 9.5” fretboard radius.

Fender’s initial plan was to come to market with a more affordable instrument than Gibson, which they did. As the decades have passed, their modular approach still makes Fender guitars usually less expensive compared to Gibson.

One of the drivers of cost is handwork hours, and Gibson’s U.S. handwork is where most of the price difference happens. When considering imported product, the two companies are almost neck and neck on pricing.

Gibson gets the “Old Dog” award in the Fender vs. Gibson showdown as they had been building instruments for 56 years by the time Fender introduced its first solid-body electric guitar.

Until the advent of solid-body guitars, the instruments Gibson produced were more in line with a violin or cello: arched top and back, steam-bent side rims, glued-in “dove-tail” neck joint, and various single-coil electronic pickups. The hollow body and anemic pickups tended to feedback when amplified. Further, the raised bridge/tailpiece setup lacked sustain and truly proper intonation.

By 1950, Gibson was being run by Ted McCarty, a visionary designer and really the father of solid body guitar. His iconic designs would include the Explorer, Flying V, Firebird, SG and, arguably the worlds most recognized guitar, the Les Paul.

With the development of the Les Paul. Gibson hoped to coax jazz players into picking a guitar with better sustain and a more stable bridge/tailpiece for better tuning stability and intonation.

Driven by the success of superstar player and codesigner Les Paul and his wife and musical partner Mary Ford, the Les Paul model was featured heavily on their prime-time television program, causing sales to swell.

A huge development in electric guitars was the brainchild of Seth Lover, one of McCarty’s team. He designed a dual-coil pickup with one coil wound in reverse to cancel hum and RF (radio frequencies). The resulting “humbucking” pickup could be wound to have more output and remain quiet even with a lot of gain added, which would be coming soon, courtesy of Jim Marshall in England and (yep) Leo Fender in California along with a cultural phenomenon known as “the sixties.”

Whether hollow body or solid body, Gibson’s build technique was very labor intensive. A lot of hand carving and shaping was involved as well as the tricky dovetail neck joint, and an especially laborious bound lacquer finish made their instruments expensive. Aside from expense, one of the main complaints from customers was their fragile angled headstock, which would break with very little encouragement.

Leo Fender was not a guitarist; he was a radio nerd. His company had been steadily growing since its inception in 1946, offering a catalog of amplifiers and steel and pedal steel guitar consoles. As a businessman, he could the see the value of Gibsons growing success with solid body guitars.

Being an engineer, Fender had the vision to simplify the process of building a solid body guitar by eliminating the difficult and time consuming glued in neck joint that Gibson was using and still does to this day. He also engineered a flat headstock, overcoming the fragile angled headstock that Gibson still uses.

Fenders “bolt-on” neck joint made for a very fast, repeatable result and could be easily removed for replacement or service. It also afforded him the efficiency of running his parts in batches, so his team could focus on building a batch of necks, then a batch of bodies, then joining and finishing a batch of instruments for shipment.

Fender introduced its first electric guitar, the Broadcaster (later renamed Telecaster), in 1950. Compared to Gibson, the design was very simple and “industrial”. A slab body with one cutaway, one single coil pickup, two control knobs and a bolt on slab neck. No attempt was made to conceal any joints; all the fasteners were clearly visible.

The only color option was clear amber tone, but Fender soon began offering custom colors, many based on GM’s Cadillac paint options of the day.

Based on player recommendations, the Telecaster was updated to a two pickup setup and was followed by a new design that would become their wildly successful icon: the Fender Stratocaster.

In 1954 the first Stratocasters began shipping out of Fender’s SoCal factory. The double cutaway, sleek contoured body was very “space age,” befitting its name. All Stratocasters were finished in a sunburst with dark edges. This allowed the workers to handle the bodies without leaving fingerprints on the edges, speeding up production time. A single ply pickguard held three single coil pickups, a 3-way pickup selector and three control knobs. The prewired electronics also sped up the production process. Finally, the patented “synchronized tremolo” bridge system (see my blog on whammy bars) allowed players to simulate the popular steel/slide riffs of the day.

The 1959 Gibson catalog listed over 40 models of electric and acoustic guitars, steels, mandolins, basses, and amps. Fender, with his Telecaster, Stratocaster, and Precision bass, was the underdog at the gates. Leo Fender was clever in that he limited his production to a handful of models, and his modular construction techniques allowed him the ability to quickly scale inventory based on demand. He also had the benefit of his hugely successful amplifier business to buoy his expansion into guitars and basses. So, the stage was set.

Today, we can see two international juggernauts in the music industry at work. Both companies have experienced scrapes and bruises over the decades. Gibson has moved, been through bankruptcy, and was notoriously acquired by Norlin for a time. Not every model they introduced was a success (Moderne. Anyone?).

The Gibson Corporation has owned and operated many other brands, including Epiphone, Kramer, Steinberger, Baldwin Piano, KRK, and Mesa Boogie, among others.

Further reorganization at Fender created the organization Fender Musical Instrument corporation (FMIC), which has owned and operated dozens of brands at times, including Squier, Jackson, Charvel, EVH, Gretsch, and Tacoma, among others.

I generally find myself reaching for a Gibson when I want a lot of “meat” to my tone with plenty of bass and round harmonics. A lot of players shaping rock and roll apparently agree, since the Les Paul has been wielded by classic rockers like Jimmy Page, Joe Perry, Billy Gibbons, Slash and, of course, Les Paul, as well as modern artists like Zakk Wylde, Buckethead, and Joe Bonamassa.

I reach for my Stratocaster when I want sparkle, shimmer, and washy harmonics. I always think Fender guitars are “optimistic.” Since it’s the main weapon of choice for the likes of Jeff Beck, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, David Gilmour (this list could go on for days) I guess I’m in good company.

I wouldn’t make the call of being in one camp or another, although many diehards certainly do. As a player, I do tend to favor the shorter scale of my Les Paul, but there’s still room in my guitar rack for my trusty Stratocaster.

I won’t try to end the age-old debate as to which is better. Both companies have a very compelling story and make awesome “paint brushes” for my audio canvas. As my wife is painfully aware, I will buy as many guitars as I can...

The best way to get to the bottom of this debate is to simply try it out for yourself. Get a few Fenders and a few Gibsons and see which ones you like best. At AMS, we make it easy to find the perfect guitar for your style with our 0% interest payment plans and industry-leading 45-day return policy. And if you want a little more info on any specific model, just give us a call at 800-458-4076. Our customer service representatives are all experienced musicians and can give you all the details to help you make an educated decision.

Despite what anyone might tell you, there’s no such thing as “too many” guitars!